The Type 95 heavy tank was the final result of Japanese multi-turreted tank design, and was in commission during the time period between

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Modeled on German and Italian tank designs, this tank featured 3 turrets. The main armament being a 70 mm cannon in a central turret, with its secondary front turret mounting a 37 mm gun and a 6.5 mm machine gun in the rear turret. Four prototypes were produced in 1934.Taki’s Imperial Japanese Army: Type 95 Heavy Tank
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History

After World War I, major powers around the world quickly adopted the revolutionary design of French

Renault FT The Renault FT (frequently referred to in post-World War I literature as the FT-17, FT17, or similar) was a French light tank that was among the most revolutionary and influential tank designs in history. The FT was the first production tank to ...

light tank. One of the most successful features on the Renault FT was a 360 degree rotating turret. While developing new single-turreted tanks more closely based on the Renault FT, many countries, including Japan, also experimented with the possibility of multi-turreted designs.

Design

Forerunner Type 91 heavy tank

The Imperial Japanese Army made the decision to develop heavy combat vehicles, which was prompted by the increasing threat posed by the Soviet Union, a potential enemy of Japan in East Asia. In 1931, Japan produced a prototype heavy tank that was designated the Type 91. It was an 18-ton, three turret tank with a

BMW IV The BMW IV was a six-cylinder, water-cooled inline aircraft engine built in Germany in the 1920s. Power was in the 180 kW (250 hp) range. World record On 17 June 1919 Franz Zeno Diemer flew a DFW F37, powered by a BMW IV engine t ...

Inline 6-cylinder gasoline engine. The Type 91 had a Type 90 57 mm cannon as its main armament. Its two smaller auxiliary turrets were each armed with a 6.5 mm machine gun. The tank had a maximum armor plate thickness of 17 mm; same as the prior

Type 87 Chi-I The Type 87 Chi-I medium tank a/k/a Experimental tank No.1 (試製1 号戦車) was the first indigenously designed tank produced by Japan for the Imperial Japanese Army. Development of this medium tank began in June 1925 and was completed by Febr ...

prototype. It had seventeen road wheels on each side, which were supported by a "two-stage leaf spring suspension system". This first design was not successful, and the Type 91 project was soon canceled. However, this project became a stepping stone in the development of the Type 95 Heavy tank.History of War: Type 91 Heavy Tank
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Development of the Type 95

Type 91 experimental heavy tank,-climbing-obstacle

The development of a new multi-turreted tank started in 1932 and was completed in 1934. The overall shape of the Type 95 followed the design of the earlier Type 91, but it had thicker armor and its firepower was significantly improved. Its suspension system was modified from that of the Type 91. While still using a leaf spring suspension, it had only nine road wheels on each side.
/ref> It was the largest Japanese tank at the time, weighting in at 26 tonne. Four prototypes were produced in 1934. However, the multi-turreted tank concept was cancelled, therefore, the Type 95 did not go into production. It proved to be a complicated design with poor mobility and had a lower top speed than desired. Modeled on German and Italian tank designs, this tank featured 3 turrets. Mounted in the central turret was the primary weapon of Type 95, a Type 94 7 cm tank gun specifically designed for it. The cannon could fire both Type 92 high-explosive shells and Type 95 armor-piercing shells. The gun elevation angle was 20 degrees and gun depression angle was −12 degrees. A 6.5 mm machine gun was also mounted in the main turret. Two addition turrets gave Type 95 yet more firepower: a Type 94 3.7 cm tank cannon was mounted in one auxiliary turret, and the other rear facing auxiliary turret featured a 6.5 mm machine gun.

Variants

Two chassis were later used as platforms for: * Experimental 10 cm SPG Hi-Ro Sha or Hiro-sha : An open top SPG with a front mounted 10 cm cannon (105 mm main gun) on Type 95 heavy tank chassis. A single prototype of the self-propelled gun was built.
/ref> * Experimental 10 cm SPG Ji-Ro or Ji-Ro Sha : An open top SPG with a rear mounted

Type 92 10 cm cannon The was a field gun used by the Imperial Japanese Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II. The Type 92 number was designated for the year the gun was accepted, 2592 in the Japanese imperial year calendar, or 1932 in the Gregori ...

(105 mm main gun) on Type 95 heavy tank chassis, similar to German

Elefant The ''Elefant'' (German for "elephant") was a heavy tank destroyer used by German Wehrmacht Panzerjäger during World War II. Ninety-one units were built in 1943 under the name Ferdinand, after its designer Ferdinand Porsche, using VK 45.01 ...

. One prototype was built. Originally, the

Type 96 15 cm howitzer The was a 149.1 mm calibre howitzer used by the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. It was intended to replace the Type 4 15 cm howitzer in front line combat units from 1937, although it fired the same ammunition. It was first used i ...

was considered for mounting on this SPG, but the plans in relation to the howitzer were abandoned.

Citations

General and cited references

* *

External links

History of War.org

Taki's Imperial Japanese Army Page - Akira Takizawa
{{Interwar tanks Heavy tanks History of the tank Multi-turreted tanks Tanks of Japan Tanks of the interwar period